Category: Learning
Sacred Spaces for a Transient Generation
I grew up attending an all-girls wilderness-focused Christian summer camp in Maine. Running through the woods, boating on the lake, plucking blueberries as we carried wood and water to a campsite R... Read More
Who decides who can be in a dialogue?
Not long ago I was in a conversation where we were brainstorming about a potential dialogue when my Muslim colleague surprised me by saying “I heard that Dr W (name withheld) is a lesbian, so don’... Read More
5774: The Year of Tangerine Teshuvah
Recently, I bought a tangerine. It was an accident, really. I didn’t mean to buy a tangerine. I meant to buy an orange. They look pretty similar, especially when you’re in a rush and you k... Read More
Rosh HaShanah – The Day of Infinite Possibilities
Each year we have the opportunity read the text of our lives differently according to the vowels we supply. Rosh Hashanah invites us to gently and lovingly bring ourselves back to God, the eternal mot... Read More
Three Holidays and a Bar Mitzvah
As I write this, the first of the Jewish High Holy Days, Rosh Hashana, is less than two days away—and (to paraphrase Rabbi Alan Lew), I am completely unprepared. The month of Elul, now rapidly comin... Read More
The Parable of Miley Cyrus
On August 25, 2013, a young woman attempted to spread her wings, and the world rejected her. I didn’t personally watch MTV’s Video Music Awards (“VMAs”), but I observed my friends and other re... Read More
Lightning Strikes
When Reverend Ray Hammond preaches, he electrifies the room. I saw lightning strike when he started his sermon with Ephesians 6:10-20. So did 10 people sitting with me. Usually, it takes more than an ... Read More
When Islamists Change Their Mind
Cartoons today, Egypt tomorrow? Recently a Catholic friend of mine revealed that he is considering going Episcopalian because, as a married man in his 30s, he is sensing a spiritual and vocational cal... Read More